Joffre Lakes Hike Safety Challenge

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Hikes Near Vancouver is thrilled to partner with BC AdventureSmart and LOWA Canada to challenge you to explore our local mountain trails safely and well-prepared. Anytime during the month of September, hike up to Joffre Lakes and post a pic at any one of the three lakes showing us at least one of The Essentials you’ve brought with you and explaining in your photo caption why it’s important to always carry the essentials. Tag us to complete this challenge and you will automatically be entered into a draw to win a pair of LOWA hiking boots. BONUS the first 25 people to complete the challenge will also receive a BC AdventureSmart safety whistle and emergency shelter.

HOW TO ENTER

ON INSTAGRAM

Post a pic at any one of the three lakes along the trail on Instagram showing us at least one of The Essentials you’ve brought with you and explaining in your photo caption why it’s important to always carry the essentials when out hiking.

Be sure to tag us @hikesnearvancouver so we know you’ve entered!

BONUS ENTRY: Get a bonus entry by including these three hashtags in your caption: #hikesnearvancouver #bcadventuresmart #lovelowa

About Hiking Joffre Lakes

This hike is located in Joffre Lakes Provincial Park, near Pemberton. It is an approximately 2.5 hour drive from downtown Vancouver. There is no public transit to this hike, but you can take the ParkBus on select weekends as well LIVV Adventures offers bus transportation throughout the week as well as weekends from April to October. If driving, only park in designated lots. It is illegal to park on the highway and your car will be towed if you do so.

The hike is 10 km return and gains 370 metres. It is an intermediate level hike that takes an average hiker approximately 4 hours to complete. Learn more about the trail here.

As with all hikes, remember to respect the terrain, environment, and other users while you are enjoying the trails. Be safe. Despite being a popular hike, Joffre Lakes is remote wilderness and you need to be totally self-sufficient. Follow the three Ts—trip planning, training, and taking the essentials. AdventureSmart is a great resource to help you get informed before heading outdoors.

Joffre Lakes is an extremely busy trail, especially on weekends. Please limit your environmental impact by following Leave No Trace principles. Stay on designated trails only, and pack out everything you pack in. There are no public washrooms, no garbage cans or cleanup services. Always leave trails cleaner than you found them. Please pick up any garbage you see left behind. Note that dogs are no longer allowed on this trail.

Too far to make it a day trip? Consider staying overnight at one of the adorable Joffre Creek Cabins nearby!

Contest Terms

The contest will run on Instagram on throughout September, 2018.

To be eligible to win, you must complete all four steps as outlined above.

Your Instagram must be a public, not private, account, otherwise we won’t be able to see it.

The photo must have been taken on the Joffre Lakes trail in September, 2018.

Contest open to everyone with a mailing address in Canada. Winner of the hike challenge’s grand prize will be drawn at random from all entries received. If you own more than one Instagram account, you may only enter using one account. Odds of winning depend on number of entries submitted. Winners will be contacted via Instagram DM and announced on the Hikes Near Vancouver social media channels. The winner of the LOWA Canada boots will be mailed the prize. The winner may select a pair of shoes or boots in any model in stock from their Trekking, ATC or ATS categories. Visit www.lowa.ca to select. The whistle and emergency shelter must be picked up from the BC AdventureSmart HQ in Burnaby at #114 – 3989 Henning Drive. Prize value is dependent on footwear selected. Average price is approximately CAD $200. Hikes Near Vancouver reserves the right to disqualify anyone who does not adhere to contest rules.

The Essentials

What survival items do you think should be carried in your pack for any outdoor adventure, whether the duration is a few hours or several days? These are not the specialized (and often essential) pieces of equipment that you would bring for your given activity (skis, a kayak, avalanche tranceiver, etc.), nor are they the items you would pack specifically for a camping trip (tent, sleeping bag, etc.), but are the basic survival items you should have in ANY outdoors situation.

Flashlight, spare batteries and bulb
A large number of unplanned overnights could be prevented by carrying a flashlight or headlamp. Often, someone who requires rescue did not start out lost, but simply ran out of daylight and was unable to get back to their car or the trailhead. Once it gets dark, the chances of getting lost are greater. Although we all have some night vision, we are much more vulnerable after dark. Without a source of light, moving at night can be dangerous.

Fire-making kit – waterproof matches/ lighter, fire starter/candle
This can be vital to staying warm enough outdoors during a change in the weather, an injury, or an unplanned overnight. Fire can be used for:

Providing essential warmth

Drying clothing

Cooking food

Signaling

Melting snow or boiling unsafe water

Keeping animals away

As well, fire can provide an important boost to the morale. The survival benefits of fire are more than just physical. It is important to practice with fire-making items, and not to underestimate the skill necessary to start a fire, especially in wet weather.

Signaling device – whistle or mirror
A whistle or a signaling mirror can increase your chances of being heard or seen. It takes much less energy to blow a whistle than it does to yell, and the sound carries farther. A signaling mirror is the device that is responsible for more Search and Rescue subject sightings by aircraft than any other type of signal. In actual rescues, a signalling mirror has been spotted from a rescue plane over five miles distant.

Extra food and water (1 litre/person)
Sometimes a trip can last much longer than anticipated, and having extra food and water can make the difference between an extended stay and a survival situation. Outdoor activities require energy, and having extra food can give us the boost we need to get out of an unplanned situation. Water is even more important, and is needed by the body even more than food.Under “normal” circumstances, a person can survive for only:

Extra clothing (rain, wind, water protection and toque)
The importance of bringing extra clothing cannot be underestimated, and yet often people have not brought enough clothing to keep them warm in changing conditions. Even in summer, temperatures can vary dramatically depending on the terrain.People often misjudge the conditions they will encounter because they only look at the weather they see before them. Hypothermia is a serious risk if you do not prepare to survive unexpected deterioration of the weather.

Navigation/communication aids
Carry maps and a compass at minimum. A Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, cellular phone, satellite phone, and hand held radio—all with fully charged batteries—are also valuable tools. Know how to use these items, but don’t over-rely on them. A lot of gadgets have been found on bodies.

First aid kit—know how to use it
Outdoor travelers are well advised to take a first aid course. There is no ‘911’ in the wilderness, and self-reliance is important. Courses that teach wilderness first aid teach this self-reliance when far from help.

Emergency shelter
Always bring a orange tarp or blanket. These can also be used as signalling devices. A tarp can be very useful in creating a makeshift shelter to keep a person dry. It may be the difference between getting hypothermia or not.

Pocket knife
A knife is an important survival tool, and can be used to help in shelter building, firewood collecting and a number of other things.

Sun protection (glasses, sunscreen, hat)
Sun protection includes glasses, sunscreen, and a hat. Sun exposure can lead to hyperthermia, dehydration, and burns. In bright environments like snowfields, it can also lead to snow blindness. These conditions can be painful, dangerous and debilitating.

About BC AdventureSmart

BC has over 1700 search and rescue (SAR) incidents annually, with 80 SAR groups, consisting of 2500 volunteers responding to those incidents. BC AdventueSmart increases awareness to help reduce the number and severity of incidents by delivering outdoor recreation safety programs to outdoor enthusiasts, to students at schools, to outdoor clubs and at workplaces to upwards of 20,000 face-to-face annually. Additionally, BC AdventureSmart hosts special events in provincial and national parks, at trail heads and on skil-hills with season and sport specific messaging. Learn more at https://www.adventuresmart.ca/

About LOWA Canada

Quality, comfort and functionality make LOWA No. 1. They provide customers only the highest quality, from materials to finished footwear. The guiding values for the high-quality of their products are the high expectations they place on themselves and their service.The diligence of their talented employees and their never-wavering standards to construct the perfect footwear accompanies every phase of product development. The guiding principle of uncompromising quality stems from their responsibility to realise only the highest product excellence. Products are not only a guarantee of optimal comfort, rather they are also a piece of safety equipment. Absolute precision in development and construction are vital points for secure footing and the best possible functionality for each and every use.They see quality as a decisive and crucial part of their philosophy that safeguards the trust their customers have in their performance. Learn more at https://www.lowa.ca/en/